Ligature
by WriteMuse
Summary: Continuation of The Goddess Inheritance, in several different point of views. Full explanation in the prologue.
1. Prologue

**Author's Note**: After a lot of thoughtful planning (and procrastination), I come back with this! Hopefully, it will be a little bit better than the last, or should I say FIRST one I had on here.

Summary: The story picks right up after The Goddess Inheritance. Told from Kate's, James', Eric's, and my original character's (No, I don't have a name yet for her. T.T), point of view, life for them changes drastically due to the destruction and heartbreak leftover from Cronus' and Calliope's rampage. Kate doesn't think she has it in her to be what her new family needs; James falls in an even darker isolation, turning into someone he doesn't recognize; Eric is lost without his mother, and the pressure of finding a replacement weighs heavily on him; the OC character lost her family to the flood in Greece, and uses harming methods to deal with her depression of being without a family and a home. There are new paths to be traveled, and new relationships to be formed. All in all, everyone is connected, bonded by Fate itself. **(**May be later revised. Seems too long to me. :( **)**

Genres not listed: Angst, horror, crime, hurt/comfort, friendship, and romance. (Also might change the rating, and genres later on if need be.)

Also, please do point out small mistakes such as grammatical errors, incorrect dialogue, incorrect personality types, etc. That matters to me. No, you do not have to review, just enjoy the journey if it catches your interest.

Other than that, try to enjoy this prologue:

* * *

_Prologue:_

**James**

Nicholas was staring sadly at Ava's throne, tears freely falling down his face. I wiped my hands on my jeans in a nervous gesture, my shoulders drooping as he set his hand on her empty throne. I couldn't look away fast enough when he mouthed her name, his tears falling faster. I glanced back at Kate to find she had done the same, and was now rocking Milo in her arms almost emptily.

"Brothers and sisters, sons and daughters," Walter began, his voice unnaturally loud in the silence. He took a breath before continuing. "While we will forever mourn the loss of our own, the time has come to acknowledge that their positions among us must be filled."

I sat up, one part of me thinking how stupid it one could think that we could replace someone we had loved for millenia, but another realized that if we—the council— didn't fill the roles that were now empty, part of Olympus itself will fall; everything would be so disrupted beyond repair.

I glanced at Kate, and her thoughts were painted clearly on her face. She didn't understand that we had to find someone else, not Ava's exact replacement in the family, but only in the role that he or she will play. I didn't think that anyone here would accept Ava's replacement into the family since it is Ava after all. We didn't, more like couldn't, handle a change this drastic.

"I will handle the replacement of my queen," Walter said, then looked to Diana. "In the meantime, I ask that Diana take the role temporarily and assist me as needed."

Diana managed a small smile, and nodded. "Of course. Whatever I can do to help."

Walter leaned his head back, his eyes rolling over to Kate. "Thank you. As for Ava's place, we must once again scour the world to find one who is worthy. It will not be an easy task. Ava was..." During his pause, I noticed that he seemed to be speaking more to Kate than anyone. I shifted again, knowing what was coming next. "She was irreplaceable. We cannot pretend otherwise, but we must continue on. Kate," he finished, making her eyes trail up to his face in question.

"Yeah?" she asked, and her eyes flickered towards Diana's hand that clenched her own. Diana's eyes held determination, and acceptance. She knew that Kate could did it, what Walter was about to ask of her, and so did I.

"I think it appropriate that you take Ava's place." Her eyes widened in that state where she was about panic. "Temporarily," Walter added quickly, then clarified his meaning as an afterthought. "Until we find someone capable if fulfilling her role." She relaxed some, though she was still tense at the idea of carrying out the task.

"What of her duties in the Underworld?" Henry cut in just as Kate was opening her mouth to speak. "I need her by my side, especially now, with the kingdom left unattended for so long." Henry had his jaw locked, meeting Walter's eye in a silent argument.

It only lasted several seconds before Walter cleared his throat. "I am not asking for a great commitment on her part," he reasoned. That still didn't seem to satisfy Henry, and I leaned on my elbow with my fist pressed against my mouth to keep the slight smirk that wanted to appear. "Only to tide us over until we have found a new goddess. She can handle it during her summer months away."

Kate shook her head furiously. "I'm staying in the Underworld during the summer now. I don't want to leave Milo."

"It would be no great thing for you to focus on helping us with Ava's duties in the meantime," Walter persisted. I frowned, thinking that he pushing it maybe just a little too much.

"I can't," Kate responded frankly, much to Walter's annoyance. "I'm sorry, but I can't replace her, and I can't leave my family."

Eric cut in before he could intimidate her into doing it. "I'll do it. It's what my mother would have wanted." Everyone ignored when his voice broke midway of the sentence.

"As generous an offer as it is," Walter began slowly, "you are not a member of the council. You do not have the ability."

Immediately after Eric's face fell, Kate jumped to his rescue. "I'll help him," she said quickly, almost frantically. "He can report to me, and I'll make sure everything goes according to plan. Just as long as I don't have to leave the Underworld for extended periods of time." She had chosen her words carefully, and I admired her for catching onto that trick so quickly. It doesn't matter what you're asking for, it matters how you phrase it.

Walter turned to Henry, who nodded in turn with a proud gleam in his eye. "That is acceptable to me, so long as Kate is not forced into any position she does not feel she is ready for."

"Very well," Walter answered too smoothly. "In addition, I ask that Kate and Eric be in charge of finding a suitable candidate for a more permanent role."

Kate blanched at the same time an almost silent hiss left Dylan's mouth. I shot a lethal glare at his direction, which he met with one of his own. I was getting sick and tired of him always underestimating and belittling Kate. When will he realize that she was pure at heart, a great addition to the council?

"How," Kate choked out, her hand gripping her mother's tighter.

Walter shrugged, and I almost snorted at the careless gesture. "I do not particularly care how you handle it, only that it is done."

_Sure, Walter. Pretend that you don't care HOW it happens when you care A LOT. That was a fool's gesture, _I thought to myself.

"Henry is familiar with the process. He can help you," Walter finished, gesturing briefly at him. He seemed almost indifferent now, and Kate fidgeted.

Henry nodded. "Or course," he murmured, lacing his fingers with Kate's.

She hesitated a fraction of a second than before. "Okay," she almost whispered. "I'll try."

"I know you will," Walter said in a poor attempt to reassure her. "And you will do wonderfully."

By the look of doubt on her face, she didn't think so. As she glanced up to look at Ava's throne, then at Nicholas, and then she met Dylan's glare head on. His lip curled up slightly, but that didn't faze her. When she turned to me, I grinned and nodded. She could do this, even if she doubted herself all the way.

Her jaw set in determination. "When do we start?" she asked hesitantly.

Walter smiled ironically at her question, glancing at Henry. "Whenever you feel that it is acceptable, daughter. That is your choice to make."


	2. Chapter 1

**Author's Note**: Here is the official first chapter, starting off with the OC character, Enna: the intro into her life. In this chapter, I ramble on with a few things, so I hope it doesn't get too boring or doesn't make any sense. But, more importantly, I wish not to offend anyone. Possible revision in the future if it doesn't turn out too well.

Weirdly, this chapter was inspired by Savant's "The Horror" and the movie _Dead Silence. _And Cheez-Its. Let's not forget the Cheez-Its.

An awesome shout out to my first reviewer: _Fabina-Percabeth-4179 _I will share my Cheez-Its with you, if you like them. (I tried to put a picture up of it, but it wouldn't let me. Sad face.)

Next chapter up will be of Kate, so enjoy~

* * *

_Chapter One_

**Enna**

I'm not one for believing in some outer world apparitions, religious affiliations, or really anything to do with the sort. My mother and father had raised my brother and I to believe that no higher power stood before us, that it was all just fiction written years ago to give the human race false hope. A means to an end, is what they said. It traps you, setting rules and regulations that tear you apart, despite all your efforts to do the right thing. Screw what you think, it what the religious law thinks that you adhere yourself to. If you disobey, you're going straight to Hell regardless of your good deeds. That one mistake put a huge red mark on the record book of your life. My parents shunned that, believing that good people can live without a religion. They never spoke bad of anyone, never stole, didn't have a criminal record.

I took this to heart, living my life freely as they wanted me to. I wasn't a delinquent by any means. I made good grades, never committed any crimes, nor did I think higher of myself than anyone else. I graduated high school with honors and moved on to some small community college. I believed we were all equal, and all that existed was the human race, animals, microorganisms, and things like that. My life was pretty normal, average at the most. I had a few friends, but never were close to them. I loved my family, following in their footsteps as they laid before me. I wanted to desperately be like them, I listened to every word they fed me. They were good people and did great things in their lives, so why shouldn't I have thought any different?

Then after the accident that took their lives, I realized what hypocrites and liars they were.

They were doing the exact same as they criticized others of doing. Believing in something that set rules for you, guiding them in the wrong direction. I had been fooled all along and didn't even realize it. I was blinded by the light. The light being my fools run to be just like my swell parents. What a joke. And that they had hidden it so well. They were thieves, two-faced. They lied to your face, then stabbed you in the back. They stabbed _me _in the back. All this time they took from people. From charities, from businesses, and the sort. They were criminals. All this time, they were using that money. Buying excessive items, like expensive cars, yachts, and designer clothes. Do you want to know how sick and embarrassing that was? It was never proved, but I knew. All the boxes filled with documents, papers that held all the proof that they had committed the crime, printed neatly in twelve font. I always questioned what they were, but my mom always explained with a haunting look in her eye that they were mistakes. Reminders of things they wished they never done, but had to in the long run. I never understood what she meant until now.

My parents lied to me my whole life, and now I wouldn't be able to be angry at them for it. Because they were dead since they chose the wrong time to go 'vacationing' in Athens, Greece with the stolen money, and my little brother. I had refused to go since I was busy with my studies, just like I was taught to do, but by the wrong people that I had trusted.

It was the most horrible moment of my life, sitting there watching the local TV news channel in my dorm when the announcement came on. Shock, horror, sadness, disbelief were the main emotions that I felt. I remembered crying a lot, being angry at myself, angry at the world. I had lost the three most important people in my life. They were gone. Dead. I would never be able to talk to them again, never be able to tell them how much I loved them. Never tell them that I hated what they've become.

Days had passed, and I heard nothing of their bodies being found. Washed out to sea is how the college's counselor explained. Many bodies had been pulled back in with the tide, never to be found again. Like that did anything to help or soothe my sadness and rage. And it was then when I surprisingly met the police in my dorm, looking for me. I was taken into the police station and questioned about the money that had gone missing from the charity my dad ran. Of course, I had nothing to say and was shocked that money had been stolen. I didn't even know that they were even committing the crime, until it clicked in my head. They took the boxes with them on vacation, which were now ruined because of the tidal wave. There was no proof of what they did, so I kept quite. The look of disappointment in the officers' gazes told me as much. He had believed me. I was let go without any charges, but what could I be charged for when I wasn't even let on to what my parents were doing in the first place?

But, I wouldn't let it go that easy. I would drop out of college for the time being to pay back the money stolen. I got a job, one that I could manage. I sold my car, and my parents' house as well. I didn't want any reminders of what had been done, and what use could a three-story mansion do for me. I didn't need that much, not for just one person.

The semester was drawing to a close, and with that it would be the last semester of college I would take. I couldn't care less. My grades had started to slide and my absences were building up, so I probably would have been dropped from everything soon.

I couldn't study, couldn't eat, sleep, nothing. Though I tried my best, all my efforts were a waste since my mind couldn't focus. I stayed in my dorm most of the time after the classes that I did go to. My roommate tried to get me motivated, but her efforts were wasted, like everything else was. I sprawled out on bed, hiding my head under a pillow. It was a childish effort to hide from my problems, but it temporarily overwrit them as my breath became too hot from being under the pillow.

That was how my roommate found me on Saturday night. She was going out for her usual party run with her best friends to this one club that had the best raves. Her heels clicked on the wood floor as she walked out of the bathroom. I peeked out from under my pillow, but quickly pulled it back over my face when I met her eyes. I made a mistake looking out from my shell to the outside world.

"Enna, you can't stay there for your whole life. Get UP," she commanded as she marched over to my messy bed. Her heels sounded like a threat alone, and I burrowed further into my blankets. "Enna," she sighed in exasperation.

"Go have fun at your party. I'll be fine by myself," I mumbled trying to pry the blanket out of her red nailed grip. "Please," I groaned as the blanket was snatched away. I curled up into a tighter ball as the air fell cold on my skin.

"Nope. Enna, committing your self to your bed is not a relationship you want to be in. Unless there is a guy with you," she added as an afterthought. "Then that would be the perfect relationship."

"Oh my God, Sara, please stop," I groaned as I held the pillow tighter over my head to shield myself from the light that seemed brighter than usual.

She laughed, then plopped down on the bed next to me. "You're making yourself miserable, Enna. You need to get out and have some fun."

"Fun is overrated."

"Is not!" she shot back. "There's a carnival down the street. Go on the bumper cars, or go play Foosball. Hell, turn on some music to help you get out of your depressing mood."

"I'm not in the mood," I sighed. I didn't want any of that. What I wanted was to undo the wrongs of my parents, but even that seemed a stretch. Sara wouldn't understand. She would have shut her mouth and went on living as if didn't happen.

"Quit being such a Debbie downer. You only live once, so make it memorable. Come party with me. It'll be fun, I promise," she offered.

I slowly eased the pillow away from eyes and glanced up at her. Her eyes lit up with the little progress I made coming out of my shell. I had to think about it for a second. Stay here, warm in my bed and waste time studying, even though I was bound not to get even a single thing out of it, or, go out and party with Sara to try to forget about my life for a few hours. I wasn't comforted about the social situation I was inevitably going to get myself stuck in. I was very socially awkward. And it seemed that not one else was as affected by my family's death as I was.

I plopped my head back down on the mattress and sighed, suddenly overwhelmed. "I think I'll just go to the library and study." Her face fell, but I quickly added, "I'll come with you next time. I swear."

"That's what you said last week, but I'll hold you to it this time," she said in mock anger, a pout forming.

"You'd better. I'm counting on you." What she didn't know was that I was really counting on her. I knew that she meant well, but she was sometimes blind to the underlying emotions and motives of others. She definitely wasn't the brightest crayon in the box, but she did have enthusiasm to make up for it. On some occasions, at least.

"I'll be back tomorrow, Enna, and you'd better be showered and dressed civilly. You look like a slob." She wrinkled her nose at me, and closed the door quickly when I threw the pillow in her direction. "I'm just saying~" she sang through the door. Her heels began clicking away until I couldn't hear them anymore.

For the longest five minutes, I continued laying there staring at the alarm clock. The minutes seemed to drag by slower and slower, so finally with a huff, I got up. No sense in just lying around.

I threw on the most comfortable clothes I could find that looked and smelled clean. It was also the last pair of jeans and shirt that was clean. Another reminder that I needed to do laundry. I figured that I could do that later since I felt that it would be another sleepless night. Even the medicine the doctor prescribed that was supposed to help me sleep didn't. It made me feel numb for awhile, but it quickly wore off, bringing the pain back tenfold.

Quickly sliding my arms through my jacket and stuffing my feet into my shoes, I grabbed my textbooks, keys, and phone, then practically ran out of my dorm. I locked the door behind me before hopping down the steps. It was October, and the air was becoming colder by the day. I loved this kind of weather since it allowed me to wear a jacket without anyone questioning why.

As I walked, I came across a few of my classmates, but I kept my head down. I didn't want to see the empathy or any other looks that would cause me to clam up. For all I was concerned, it was none of their business, and if they brought it up I would rightly tell them to leave it alone. I wasn't anybody's concern for all they cared. I was just another girl who had lost her parents in a tragic freak accident. Soon enough, I would be put in their memories. They wouldn't be able to place me, or even remember my name.

I sighed as I thought this, kicking an empty soda bottle out of my way. It was well past sundown, some of the lampposts were just now flickering to life. It made me feel slightly comfortable knowing that I wasn't completely closed in the darkness. Me and the dark didn't go well together, especially late at night. My paranoia caught up with me, so I jogged the rest of the way to the campus library.

The library was mostly empty. A few students, but mostly the staff. The man at the front counter gave me brief smile, and I nodded in return. He was friendly, more than the other librarians, and we spoke occasionally. That's just about as far as we went in speaking terms. I didn't ask his name, nor did he ask for mine.

As I scanned my ID at the check in, I scouted out my usual spot in the very back corner, then headed towards it. I sank down into the worn leather chair and sighed. From this spot, I had a good view of everything, plus my back was to a solid wall so nothing could sneak up behind me. I shook my head at how paranoid I was being. Being careful never hurt anyone, did it?

I set my books down on the attached desk top, and flipped to the marked page. "Time to waste some more of my life away," I murmured to myself, then began to read.

* * *

"The library is closing."

"Huh?" I mumbled as I glanced up from the slurring line of text. I never realized how tired I was until now. I glanced around. Most of the lights were off except for the front, near the counter. The darkness seemed to stare back at me, and I shivered. "Sorry." I stood, sliding my books off the desk into my arms. I rubbed at my eyes. "How long have I been here?"

"Four hours," he answered, then looked closely at me. as we walked towards the exit. "You look a little pale. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," I said a little too quickly. He gave me a doubtful look but thankfully he didn't ask anything else. "Don't forget to check back out as you leave. You wouldn't believe how many students forget to do that."

I said nothing, but put my card under the scanner. The beep that followed seemed louder the usual, and I winced as it rung in my ears. When he looked at the computer his eyebrows rose. "Ravenna? As in Ravenna Carson?" His eyes turned empathetic. That was where the line was drawn.

I narrowed my eyes at him, daring him to say something about how tragic it was, that over time it will get better. I was tired of hearing the same line over and over again. It sounded all false now. Just empty words with empty implications.

He faltered under my glare. "I- I was just going to say how unique your name was," he offered. He flinched at how false it sounded, and looked anywhere but me.

"Thanks," I forced out. "My mom came up with it," I added sarcastically. He gave me a strange look, I shook my head. "I prefer Enna anyhow."

"What does Ravenna mean?"

"It means 'raven.'" I said bluntly.

He gave me a weird look. "Ravens are not the best birds to be named after," he commented, more to himself than anything. "They represent death."

I sighed and let the door shut behind me as I prepared to lecture him about ravens. This happens when someone says that. It's just a habit I formed, though I didn't know why I felt the need to defend ravens. "Ravens do not represent 'death' in particular. They are often seen only as carrion birds, but they are far more intelligent than that. They are often seen as messengers as well as prophesiers, since the sound they often make is 'cras,' which means tomorrow in Latin. Also, the feathers didn't used to be black. According to many religions, the raven failed in tasks which earned its bad anti-mankind reputation."

I continued on with my little lecture. "In Norse mythology, the god Odin was accompanied by two large ravens: Hugin and Mugin. Hugin represented power of thought while Mugin represented the mind and ability to intuit meaning. Odin used them as spies due to their high intelligence. In Greco-Roman lore, Ravens were associated with Apollo and Athena, but in both myths they changed its feathers to black because of its inability to hold secrets."

"In Christianity, Noah sent out a raven to confirm the receding floodwaters, but since it did not return, God turned their feathers black and sent out a dove instead. All these lore and stories telling of how it's a failure and traitor to mankind is false. Mankind has painted a bad picture of the raven, but to truly see how one acts and realize how smart and _not evil _it is, well, you have to have open eyes."

He stared at me for a few seconds, not blinking. I shifted uncomfortably. I had rambled too much. It was times like this, the real reason I had a hard time making friends. Whenever someone had an opinion of something with a deeper meaning, I opened my mouth and words come out.

"Common knowledge, right?" I offered weakly. When he didn't speak, I felt my face growing warm. Perfect. I knew I should have never left my dorm.

"Common knowledge," he echoed, then finally blinked. "Well, thank you for the little knowledge you have expelled on me." I eyed him, trying to figure out if he was serious or being sarcastic.

"You're welcome? And it really is common knowledge, if you're religious enough to find out the meaning behind your beliefs. And, no, I'm not criticizing you or anybody on anything," I said quickly when a defensive look formed in his eyes. "Plus, you spend a lot of time in here," I added, motioning at the shelves of books."You were probably bound to come across it one day. I just fast forwarded the time for you."

He let out a little burst of laughter. "I guess you did. But, I have one more question for you."

"Sure, why not?" I mumbled setting my hand back on the door handle.

"Why do prefer being called Enna?"

"I just do," I offered, shrugging.

He didn't seem disappointed, but he smiled at me. "Well, Enna, thank you for the history lesson."

"Consider it a bedtime story," I answered waving my hand and heading out the door.

"Have a nice night," he called after me.

"You too," I hollered back, trudging outside.

It seemed to have gotten colder in the last four hours. Zipping up my jacket, I put a tighter grip around my books and began jogging back to my dorm. The campus seemed lifeless as I went, but then again it was almost eleven on a Saturday night. Everyone was either gone to a party or somewhere else to have fun.

I was just glad to be getting back to my dorm to do laundry, something I should have done weeks ago. I bounded up the steps when I stopped cold. Curled in front of the door, passed out with vomit on her shirt, was Sara. Her hair was a knotted mess, and I could even smell the alcohol on her from where I stood. An empty bottle of Vodka was clenched in her hand.

"Are you serious?!" I blurted before I could help it.


End file.
